Fri, 31 Aug 2007
Carl Hiaasen
It's quite good picking up on an author when they've
already got a few books out. When you've finished the
first you can just pop down to the bookshop and scoop
up some more instead of having to wait for the next one to be published.
Carl Hiaasen, for example has already written an arm
load and looks set to be around to write quite a few
more. An interesting thing about Florida-based Hiaasen
is that he's been (quite a while back) picked up by
semi-trendy media outside the US - in the UK for
example.
The reasons for this are varied but here are some -
he's very funny; in his crime books there are an
assortment of over-the-top, only in America figures; the
badies usually suffer fairly gory and uncomfortable
ends, and imaginative too. One UK critic compares him
to Evelyn Waugh for the simmering rage he views the
world with - disgusting property developers, shyster
politicians, stupid and venal white trash - the list
goes on and on. Of course it's the humour and
imagination that saves the day. Without these we'd just
have another depressing alternative news source.
Our favourite so far is Sick Puppy which stars a
take-no-prisoners eco-warrior against a cast of venal
scum-buckets which includes an ex-drug dealer property
developer with a Barbie fetish. Suitably grissly ends
await quite a few of them.
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pre Dec 04 reviews are here